CH 6.2

The young master was angry! It was like a shocking secret was discovered and all the servants gossiped to each other privately. Then one by one, they deliberately passed by the door of his room and took in the young master’s expression. The young master had been taught strictly since he was a child and in addition, the method of Xiao’s Xiao Phoenix Crying Blade required calmness, self-control, and not being impetuous. That was why he had developed such a mature and prudent character. Although he was angry, he rarely lost his temper in front of others so everyone was curious. Who on earth was capable of making him so angry?

Soon everyone understood. Lunch at Bai Sheng Shan Village was half an hour late.

Having lost his temper earlier, the young master seemed much calmer now looking at Aunt Hong and Lei Lei in front of him.

Even a skilled woman could not cook without firewood. Aunt Hong’s face was filled with aggrievance and remorse, “Today, lunch was half cooked before the firewood ran out. Fortunately, Wu Shun went to chop some more, otherwise the whole village would really go hungry.” She sighed and looked at Lei Lei, “This girl was born with thin skin and tender flesh with little strength. She can’t cut firewood to begin with. Let’s arrange for her to help elsewhere, she won’t be able to do the duties in the kitchen.”

Lei Lei explained it like this, “It’s just that I haven’t done any physical work before and it was too difficult to come up with a creative idea to cut firewood. It’s not suitable for me.”

What was this about coming up with a creative idea, if no one helped you, you could not chop it, right? The young master’s mouth twitched and he completely forgot that he had gotten angry because of this before.

Aunt Hong laughed and said, “I should have known, this girl was born so delicate and fragile. At first glance, she’s a lady from a big family who’s enjoyed a good life so how could she do rough work like this. Your intentions are good enough.” Taking her hand, she said kindly, “Look, your hands are blistered. Take a good rest.”

Lei Lei was silent.

The young master frowned, “Forget it, just live in peace. These jobs will be done by others.”

As a time travelling woman, Lei Lei was not willing to let her skills be buried, “Actually, even though I don’t know how to chop wood, I can cook!”

As soon as she said this, both the young master and Aunt Hong were suspicious, “You?”

Lei Lei wanted to show off her skills, so she grasped at the opportunity to perform, “I learned how to cook before so it should taste good, plus I’ll cook food that you’ll definitely never have eaten before.”

It turned out that her skills were not used in the right place, the two of them realised.

Seeing that Aunt Hong had no objections, the young master nodded in agreement.

The next day, Lei Lei was officially promoted to being a chef of the Bai Sheng Shan Village. With a spoon in her left hand and a kitchen knife in her right hand, she had a big apron tied around her waist, full of posture.

“How do you use this thing?”

“You don’t know?” Aunt Hong was startled.

“Forget it, forget it, I don’t need this.”

…

“Can the rice be cooked like this?” Aunt Hong was worried, “Shouldn’t a steamer be used…”

“Yes, yes, no need for that.”

“…”

“Oh dear it’s turned into a paste, lower the intensity of the fire! No no, not enough firewood, add some more…”

“What’s this?”

“I made some dim sum.”

“…”

“Too much pepper and Sichuan pepper powder!” Aunt Hong could not help coughing with tears in her eyes.

“Ah, it wasn’t chilli powder?”

“There’s also too much chilli powder. Young Master won’t be able to eat it, cough cough…”

Everyone in the kitchen left while choking.

In the end, the whole village waited for more than an hour before they were finally ushered into lunch -– a pot of hard rice that could hit birds, a few plates of strange and colourful dishes where the original ingredients used could not be identified. There was also a plate of dim sum that smelled burnt.

Everyone fiddled with their chopsticks for a bit, then summoned the courage to take a bite. They were stunned for a long while and then all left their seats.

Lei Lei took a seat by herself. She picked up some with her chopsticks and put them into her mouth. She chewed it twice and then spat it out, wiping her mouth with her hand. She made an analysis and summary without changing her expression, “Actually, this dish should be delicious. The main reason is that I’m not used to your equipment here and I’m a bit unfamiliar with them, so it’s inevitable that I wouldn’t get it right the first time. It will be better when I become more familiar with them.”

More familiar? Countless eyes turned green from feeling ill.

Someone outside the door reported that the young master’s food was returned completely untouched.

Lei Lei stood up and put on her apron, “I’ll go make dinner.”

Butler Zhao had barely swallowed a mouthful of rice. Hearing this, his beard trembled and he put down the bowl. Forgetting about how he saw her as a freeloader, he said, “Young Miss, don’t work anymore. Let Aunt Hong do it.”

“It’s okay, it’s okay, I’m happy to do it.”

Everyone turned pale.

Aunt Hong ran over hurriedly to hold her back, “Young Miss’ intentions are good enough. This is hard work, leave it to us to do. Nobody will blame you.” She desperately winked at everyone, “Isn’t that right?”

Everyone nodded in unison.

Lei Lei said seriously, “How could I possibly do that?”

“Why not, everyone knows you’re a girl with a kind heart.” Aunt Hong tore off her apron and pushed her out of the door along with the maid who was burning the firewood. “Actually, there isn’t a shortage of staff in the kitchen, the two of us are enough. How could we let you do such manual labour? Just come around if you’re free to chat with us.”

Feeling that this meal did not reflect her craftsmanship, Lei Lei stretched her arms and grabbed the door frame, struggling and thrashing, “Actually, I can still…”

Nobody intended on listening to her continue and they all pushed her with their hands and legs, “Go, go.”

“Hey, hey, I’m just not familiar with the equipment in the kitchen here,” Lei Lei was very reluctantly pushed out of the door. She shouted, “Let me try a few more times, I can make you things you’ve never eaten before… The most delicious things!”

The most delicious things? Everyone believed that this would be possible in the future, but no one had the courage to use their stomach to contribute to other people’s inventions, so they barricaded the door tightly.

Seeing her adamantly refusing to leave, Aunt Hong suddenly had inspiration, “Why don’t you go to Young Master’s side and see if he needs you to serve him?”

Serving “Xiao Bai”? Lei Lei really stopped insisting, “Oh… Okay.” She turned around and took two steps, then stopped, “If you have anything that needs doing, remember to call me for help!”

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, “We will, we will.”

Having been trained strictly since childhood, this was not the first time the young master had experienced hunger. He had already pretty much guessed that this woman might cause public disorder so he decided to go to the kitchen to mediate. Unexpectedly, just outside the courtyard he saw Lei Lei being coaxed out of the dining room by a group of people.

The corners of his mouth raised up. He turned around to walk back.

“Xiao Bai! Xiao Bai!” A cry came from behind.

The young master felt very helpless. This was far from the etiquette education he had received since he was a child. Bai Sheng Shan Village was famous far and wide. There was no one in the world of martial arts who did not respectfully call him Master Xiao or Young Master Xiao. Now, a girl was calling him Xiao Bai this and Xiao Bai that.

He stopped and looked sideways at her.

Lei Lei said, “It’s like this, they said there’s no shortage of staff in the kitchen.

The young master was speechless. How could there be no shortage of people? He guessed Aunt Hong would come over to ask for another girl in a while.

Lei Lei was cheerful, “They asked me to wait on you.”

He had goosebumps from her looking at him, so could the young master dare to let her serve him? He shook his head, “No need, just live in peace.”

Lei Lei said, “How about this, I’m actually useful in many ways. For example, practising sword skills. Whatever you need, I can bring it for you. Of course, I won’t ask you to chop firewood again. Besides, your clothes are always just two colours. It’s too old fashioned, you’re only 24! I’ll prepare different colours for you to wear, you can just eat and sleep…” She stopped talking.

Sure enough, that handsome face flushed red.

Lei Lei sized him up viciously. It turned out that such an upright handsome man could think wildly and even blush. Should she pounce on him again to flirt with him frivolously?

He had seen the methods of the witches from the Qian Yue Cave many times and he had also experienced larger scenarios. After all, the young master’s concentration was extraordinary and he soon restored his calm. He was likely embarrassed and did not speak. He only smiled at her slightly then walked away.

In fact, the young master had a special charm when he smiled and he was like a different person. With his slightly upturned lips and his smiling eyes, he seemed slightly devilish contrary to his usual poker-faced and serious appearance. It was a pity that after his surprise smile when they first met, it was a rare sight. Now that it was suddenly revealed, it literally knocked down Lei Lei on the spot.

What a handsome man, Lei Lei admired.

In the next few days, no one from Bai Sheng Shan Village ever came to her for help. Even Butler Zhao was more polite when he saw her and did not express any dissatisfaction with her eating and drinking. So, Lei Lei became the most idle one in Bai Sheng Shan Village. Of course, she was very unsatisfied with this state and continued to try hard to find a job. She followed the young master around all day. When the young master practised his sword skills, she clapped. When the young master was thirsty, she offered tea. Her ability to take cue from his words and expressions improved a lot. At the beginning, the young master felt apologetic, but seeing that she insisted on doing this, he did not say anything.

On this day, Lei Lei was wandering around. She reached the corner of the corridor when she suddenly heard a few people talking.

“From what Butler Zhao said, it’s likely that Leader He won’t come back until after the Mid-Autumn Festival.”

“It’ll take that long to investigate Jia Kong City?”

“The day before yesterday, a major event happened at the Xi Sha Sect and Leader Wen was almost assassinated. Although it was unsuccessful, they insisted that the assassin was from Nan Hai Sect. Now the two sects are making trouble in front of Leader He again so the old man naturally has to mediate.”

“…”

It turned out that a group of servants were sitting on the corridor railing and chatting. Having been here for a few days, Lei Lei has gotten to know most of the people in Bai Sheng Shan Village. The person speaking at the moment was the one who followed Butler Zhao, Wang Cong. He always brought back the latest news of the martial arts world. Hearing him say the three words, “Nan Hai Sect”, Lei Lei immediately thought of the handsome man she met at the inn who might be called “Leng Sheng Yin”, so she came out from behind the pillar.

Wang Cong sighed, “A mere longevity fruit caused the three main sects to break apart and made everyone in the martial arts world delusional…”

Lei Lei interjected, “Then what happened to the longevity fruit?”